How to Get Better at Killing Bad Projects
This post shares the key insights from this HBR article.
Fail fast, and move on to the next big idea. Most organizations know this. But, they “STRUGGLE to kill bad projects … Even supposedly ruthless venture capitalists often struggle to end projects at the right time.”
THE PROBLEM IN PRACTICE
“Project ideas with early promise might get prioritized for funding, but go on to disappoint. Meanwhile, others that look less promising in early stages miss out on funding but go on to become market hits.”
WHAT TO DO INSTEAD
💔 1. Forego proof of failure. Don’t hunt for conclusive proof that something would fail. Because “when you’re dealing with the uncertainty of a new product or market, there is no reliable proof that a project is going to fail.”
INSTEAD: Make “continued go or no-go decisions based on a qualitative assessment of changes to the main assumptions underlying the business case that led you to invest in the project in the first place.”
🔎 2. Get a business case detective. Why? Because when companies are nearing the launch, people switch into delivery mode. They don’t bother to evaluate and update the business case with the latest insights.
INSTEAD: To counteract the shift in priorities, create the role of business case detective to 1) identify changes to business case assumptions, 2) build on new information about technological advancements, customer preferences, competitors’ moves, or other factors with bearing on project business cases.
Is it worth the investment? YES! “Averting one expensive fail stands to more than pay for the extra business-case detective on your team.”
🔪 3. Don’t sweat the kill. Once a project showed a clearly deteriorating business case, do not spent a disproportionate amount of time discussing it. Do not postpone or revisit decisions. Do not downgrade expectations to made it look as if targets were met.
INSTEAD: Discontinue the worst performers swiftly. “The heightened attention to bad projects would be better placed on more promising alternatives.”
These insights come from the HBR article: “Research: How to Get Better at Killing Bad Projects.”
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash
